Registered Nurse Infection Prevention Coordinator

Trinity Health•Des Moines, IA

About The Position

The Infection Prevention Coordinator leads the organization’s Infection Prevention Program in partnership with the infectious disease physician and other clinical leaders. The role focuses on preventing and reducing infection risks, monitoring trends, maintaining regulatory compliance, and supporting teams in following evidence-based infection prevention practices. The coordinator serves as a resource for leaders, providers, nurses, and colleagues across the organization and supports a culture of patient and colleague safety. The role includes coordinating infection surveillance and reporting across hospital and clinic settings; identifying risks and improvement opportunities; collaborating with clinical, quality, safety, risk management, employee health, and facilities teams; and leading or supporting infection prevention quality improvement and education. The coordinator also maintains applicable regulatory and accreditation compliance, coordinates required reporting, and supports infection prevention requirements related to construction and Environment of Care rounds.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Nursing or a healthcare-related field required.
Infection Control Certification required, or must be obtained within two years after eligibility requirements are met.
Minimum of 5 years of experience in a healthcare setting.
Minimum of 2 years of direct Infection Prevention, Infection Control, or related infection prevention experience.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree preferred.

Responsibilities

Lead and coordinate the organization’s Infection Prevention Program.
Monitor, investigate, and report infections and communicable diseases across hospital and clinic settings.
Track infection trends, hand hygiene practices, and other infection prevention data.
Identify infection risks and develop strategies to reduce or prevent them.
Round with providers, leaders, and nurses to identify infection prevention opportunities and provide recommendations.
Support investigations, root cause analyses, and follow-up plans related to hospital-acquired infections and other infection risks.
Serve as an infection prevention resource for medical staff, senior leadership, nursing, and other clinical teams.
Partner with Quality & Safety, Risk Management, Employee Health, Facilities, and other departments on infection prevention initiatives.
Provide oversight, consultation, and collaboration with the Infection Prevention Specialist.
Participate in department huddles, nursing and medical staff meetings, quality and safety meetings, and regional infection prevention workgroups.
Support infection prevention efforts within designated critical access hospitals, as applicable.
Lead and support performance improvement initiatives related to infection prevention.
Analyze and communicate infection prevention data to help improve patient safety, quality, and operational performance.
Educate colleagues on infection prevention, hand hygiene, hospital-acquired conditions, safe work practices, and evidence-based standards.
Participate in new-hire education and ongoing staff education.
Maintain infection prevention practices that meet applicable regulatory and accreditation requirements.
Develop, monitor, and implement policies consistent with CMS requirements, CDC recommendations, state regulations, and The Joint Commission standards.
Coordinate required infection prevention data and reporting for regulatory agencies, leadership, governing boards, and quality committees.
Support infection prevention requirements related to construction projects and Environment of Care rounds.
Work collaboratively with Employee Health to help reduce infection risks among colleagues and support follow-up after potential exposures.
Consult with Facilities and contractors on infection prevention requirements for construction projects.
Perform other duties as assigned.